At the end of every year I create a bucket list with the things I want to do or achieve in the upcoming year. For 2017 there was a big wish that I have had for a long time and was finally able to fulfill: A clinical elective abroad, meaning dental volunteering in a developing country. I have always wanted to travel the world. Already at the age of 14 I started planning a high school semester in the USA which happened two years later. And after attending a presentation at my university about dental volunteering a few years ago I was ready for it myself. About a month and a half ago it was finally time to pack my bags, get on a plane and head towards my next big adventure.

Preparations

During the eight months before there were many preparations to take care of. After the organization had accepted my application for the volunteering, me and the other team members had to collect many material and money donations in order to finance our work there. Letters of recommendation had to be written, applications for visa had to be made and many other formalities needed to be taken care of. A month and a half before our flight I got the obligatory vaccinations and after that I was finally ready to go. Since I wanted to discover the country, me and two other team members decided to book a round tour together.

Traveling through Madagascar

On August 31. we arrived late at night in Antananarivo, capital of Madagascar and stayed there for another day before starting our tour. Honestly, I have to admit that “Tana” was a bit of a culture shock for me. Very loud, very dirty and very, very poor. Of course I had been expecting it to be this way but never expected it to this extend. We actually walked through the city by ourselves on that day, and later found out that it is recommended not to go without a local guide. Our hotel on the other hand was wonderful. Right around the corner from the dangerous streets of Tana, almost unreal. I cannot imagine any bigger contrast.

The next day we started our round tour. Our madagassy Guide “Mamy” showed us around the cities Antsirabe, a former health resort from the colonial times, Ambositra, where we would have our dental volunteering later, Ranomafana, a small village near the rainforest, and Sahambavy, where they have the famous tea plantages of Madagascar. It was especially interesting to see the nature change from a scraggy red sand to more and more trees and finally the rich green of the rainforest. Personally I though Ranomafana to be the most impressive one. The high, green mountains that were held in a thick fog every morning, the rock faces that had constantly water drip from them and the deep rainforest that we walked through for six hours. All this was simply magical.

Dental Volunteering

The round trip eventually ended in Ambositra where we met the rest of the team. We volunteered in a small village called Andina and got up with the sun at 5:30 every morning to drive 1.5 hours on the bad roads to get there. They have a small medical center where we had a room to treat our patients. It was very different to Germany. Instead of dental chairs they had to lay on tables and our translator, a student from Antananarivo who studies German at University, translated to us where the people felt pain. Most of them had never visited a dentist and had neither held a toothbrush before. Therefore we had to pull many teeth and tried to raise their awareness for oral hygiene by demonstrating how to brush the teeth the right way.

It really was a wonderful experience. I gained a completely different view on many things that are self-evident in Germany. I was able to gain so many impressions and learn new skills – and hopefully I was able to return some of it.

Marble is the ultimate blogger trend at the moment. It’s not just super instagrammable, I also feel like my phone is super safe when it’s protected by a marble-looking case. I am so happy we got the chance to collaborate with Caseapp because my phone urgently needed an outfit change and my laptop needed to be prepared for the daily journey to uni. Still, I must say that it was rather a coincidence that I ended up with all those marble things just in time for uni to start. Yes, you heard right. I am back in Germany to finish my last year of university. It still hasn’t fully hit me yet. There are days when I wake up thinking I’m still in London and only realising where I am when I open my eyes. It’s pretty surreal. I guess it’s something you get used to, returning to a calm and quiet town after the constant buzz in London. Let me tell you one thing though – I am not done with London and will probably spend a few days each month with my London-friends in my favourite city.

Right now I am quite busy with getting back into my “old” life – university started, I will meet my friends to catch up and will move back into my little room in my flat share. At the moment I’m crashing on Louisa’s sofa and will spend a few days at my parents’ house before moving this weekend.

But let’s get back to our collaboration with Caseapp, where we ordered two iPhone cases and a marble skin to protect my macbook as I will carry it to uni every day. At Caseapp you can design your own custom cases and the shipping is super fast. Louisa and I went for rather classic designs because they are just oh so pretty. The quality is amazing – my phone and laptop have great protection now and they look so good at the same time!

The planner was a gift from my colleagues at the PR agency I worked at in London. I had looked at it so many times at Urban Outfitters as I am a huge fan of making lists and organising my day. What is better than being able to cross out things you’ve done? I’m in love and can’t wait to use it!